Confection explosive shell.



L. BRAQUIER. GONPEGTION EXPLOSIVE SHELL.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 6, 1909.

Patented Mar. 1, 1910.

WITNESSES m w w.

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UNITED STATES PATENT oEEioE.

LEON BRAQUIER, OF VERDUN-SUR-MEUSE, FRANCE.

GONFECTION EXPLOSIVE SHELL.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEON BRAQUIER, a citizen of France, residing atChateau du Coulmier, Verdun-surl/Ieuse, Meuse Department, France, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Confection Explosive Shells, ofwhich the following is a specification.

The explosive articles of sugar and chocolate hitherto manufactured havemany disadvantages which render their sale diflicult and their useimpossible and dangerous. The disadvantages occasioned by the explosionof the petard placed in the interior of the casing are as follows: Thecasing and the articles placed within it are blackened and receive adisagreeable odor from the smoke and flame produced by the explosion ofthe petard. This flame is communicated to the paper which composes thepetard and to other articles liable to catch fire; these, if thrown upona table by the explosion, may burn the table cloth and the garments ofpeople surrounding said table, which is somewhat dangerous.Independently of the disadvantages hereinbefore enumerated, as theinterval of time between the moment of lighting the fuse and that of theexplosion is very short, the audience does not experience the thrill ofanxiety and surprise, for which purpose this kind of explosive surprisearticles are made.

Now this invention has for its object to prevent the flame produced bythe explosion burning articles placed in the petard, and the smoke fromblackening and communicating its odor to the walls of the casing and toits contents, by the use of an improved arrangement of petard, and theinternal arrangement of the explosive articles of sugar and chocolate.

In order to allow of the invention being better understood referencewill now be made to the accompanying drawing, in which the invention isshown, as an example, applied to an article having the form of a shell.

In this drawing :Figure 1 is a sectional view of the invention, and Fig.2 is a part sectional view showing a modification.

This shell is composed of a casing A of sugar and chocolate surmountedby a neck B. A box 0 of metal or cardboard, the lid a or bottom f ofwhich is perforated with holes bb, rests on the base A of the easing A.Above the box C there is a disk D,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 6, 1909.

Patented Mar. 1, 1910. Serial No. 521,367.

the diameter of which is equal to or smaller than that of the shell.This disk D is placed directly on the lid of the box C, or it may beseparated therefrom for a space of some millimeters, by means of threesupports of cardboard or other available material resting on the saidlid. The gas produced by the explosion is thus released in the chamberH.

In the interior of the box O, a petard E is placed, as illustrated byFig. 1, or any other explosive device, such as the one represented as anexample in Fig. 2. That device is constituted by a metallic capsule orsocket I into which the explosive material is placed; it is surmountedby a screw regulating plug J. This socket and its plug J are perforatedeach one with a hole for passing the fuse cl, and serving as an air-holefor the evacuation of gases when the deflagration takes place. In eachcase, in the device or petard, the fuse d which is fixed thereto crossestwo central tubes F and G fitting into one another, and goes outafterward through the neck B of the shell. As will be seen, the tube Fextends into the box C and through the partition D into the end of thetube G, thus strengthening the interior construction of the device.

In order to cause the shell to explode, a light is applied to the fuse,which by reason of its length burns for about thirty seconds, and duringthis time keeps the audience in suspense and anxious to know what isgoing to emerge from the interior. WVhen the fuse is consumed up to thedevice or petard, the latter ignites in its turn, explodes, and the gasexpands in the chamber H and bursts the casing of the shell, whichdistributes its contents around it. At the moment when the combustion ofthe powder or explosive material, contained in the device takes place,the smoke and gas which are released therefrom pass through the holesZ)Z) of the box C where they are broken and then come to expand into thechamber II, leave there the last residues of combustion, and provoke thebursting of the casing A of the shell. The smoke and smell of the powderor explosive material and the flame thus do not come into contact withthe envelop or casing A, nor with the sweets and fancy articlescontained in the shell.

In order to prevent the casing bursting at the bottom A metal wires orother suitable substances are placed inside thereof, the ends of whichwires are fixed in the walls of the casing. The bottom being thus madestronger, when the explosion takes place, the burstlng of the casing Ais produced in the upper part and not at its base.

It is quite evident that a disk D may be employed, the diameter of whichis equal to or smaller than that of the shell and which is adapted to becarried by supports. The box C may also be of any suitable form, and be,if necessary, replaced by a simple explosion chamber provided at thebase of the shell and over all its surface, the walls of which areperforated with-holes like those in the lid, or they may be imperforate.This box may also be reversed, that is to say, that the perforated lidmay be placed on the bottom A of the shell. In the interior of the box Ca suitable substance is placed. in which a portion of the smoke producedby the petard is concentrated. The internal walls of the chamber H maybe coated with non-infiammable paper.

The invention resides in the following:

1. A confection explosive shell comprising a casing made of ediblematerial, confection within the casing, an explosive device also withinthe casing, and a fuse extending from the explosive device through thecasing.

2. A confection explosive shell comprising a casing, a partitiondividing the interior of said casing into two chambers, confectionlocated in one chamber, a box having a perforated top located in theother chamber, an explosive device in said box, and a fuse lead ing fromsaid explosive device through the box and casing. \n

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEON BRAQUIER.

Witnesses EDOUARD VATTIER, JOSEPH LECOCQ.

